In this final week of breast cancer awareness month, we are sharing a part of the story you rarely see: a man who received the diagnosis.
Avist Owens can often be found taking care of his horse, Sandy, at his property in Dallas.
He says the animal is part of his family, and like family, she helped him through some of his darkest days, including two bouts with cancer.
"It was hell to pay," he said.
Owens overcame bladder cancer in 2006. The cancer returned in 2015 when he was diagnosed with breast cancer.
Owens said he felt a small lump in his right breast.
"It's not in the nipple, it's under the nipple and you could just feel it in the muscle part," he explained.
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Right away, Owens told his doctor about the lump. The doctor ordered a mammogram and a biopsy. Three days later, he learned he had breast cancer.
"I was shocked because I felt like I was healthy," he said.
Owens found taking care of his horse therapeutic.
"She's been like an inspiration. I can talk to her and she doesn't talk back," Owens said.
Owens finds the same sense of understanding at a support group called Men for Men. The group meets every month at Methodist Charlton Medical Center in Dallas to share stories about a battle too many fight in private.
"To them, that's something that they conceal so to have a support group where they can come in and openly talk about it to other men who also have breast cancer really opens the door for them," said breast cancer nurse navigator Vicki Hallum.
"I will tell anybody you need a friend, you can't go through this by yourself," Owens said.
Breast cancer is about 100-times less common in men than women.
The American Cancer Society estimates about 2,600 men will be diagnosed this year in the United States.
